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Our view: Vorpagel wins 27th primary, Robin Williams' death

Wisconsin
12:23 a.m. CDT August 18, 2014

This Nov. 23, 2009 photo released by Starpix shows actor-comedian Robin Williams performing his stand-up show, “Weapons of Self Destruction,” at Town Hall in New York. After thousands of fans petitioned the creators of the online role-playing video game "World of Warcraft" to memorialize Williams, the game's lead designer said Thursday that Blizzard Entertainment planned to create a character inspired by the actor, comedian and avid gamer, who died Monday, Aug. 11 of an apparent suicide at the age of 63. Williams was a notable fan of the massively multiplayer fantasy game, which is currently played online by about 6.8 million people. (AP Photo/Starpix, Dave Allocca)(Photo: Dave Allocca, AP)

Hit: A good, old-fashioned political campaign ended well for Tyler Vorpagel, an aide to retiring Congressman Tom Petri, as he outlasted two fellow Republicans to win the GOP primary in the 27th Assembly District on Tuesday.

Vorpagel will face fellow Plymouth resident Scott Heinig in November to succeed retiring Rep. Steve Kestell, R-Elkhart Lake. It was a close primary race with Vorpagel garnering 37 percent of the vote to 33 percent for Sheboygan Ald. Darryl Carlson and 31 percent for former Plymouth Ald. Jackie Jarvis.

There wasn't much media hype with this election, and Vorpagel attributes his win to plenty of walking, knocking on doors and meeting "a lot of people." In other words, traditional campaigning that doesn't rely on slick television ads for support. Door-to-door stumping for votes is a relatively lost art that, as Vorpagel proved, can prove effective.

He promises to continue that campaign tactic leading up to November.

Carlson and Jarvis should be commended for running a clean, positive race throughout.

Miss: The suicide of actor Robin Williams last week shocked the country and focused attention on what many mental health experts say is a silent killer — depression.

It left us asking how a personality who exuded so much fun and frivolity in films and on TV could mask an individual troubled and desperate enough to hang himself, leaving behind what seems to many an ideal life of fame and riches.

Alcohol and drug abuse have hounded many a Hollywood star, but probably in no greater proportion than the population as a whole in this country. Williams was haunted by these "demons," as they have come to be called in the pop culture lingo of the day. Many people are, from the ghetto to the penthouses of the rich and famous. Alcohol and illegal drugs are equal opportunity killers.

They are not always associated with depression, but there often is a connection. Which is cause, and which effect, can be confusing and something best left to mental health experts. We wish Williams had sought additional help for his problems and not chosen the path he did.

We can hope that his death will serve as a wake-up call to focus greater attention on depression. That way, some good will yet come from the life of arguably the most talented comic actor ever.

Hit: The power of social media was on full display recently in the saga of Liam the cat, as chronicled on Facebook by Sheboygan resident Peggy Brennan.

Brennan took in Liam after finding the skinny, sick, dehydrated cat in a Sheboygan Falls barn. She began "Liam's Journey" on Facebook and dozens of people followed along. Liam was eventually taken to the Sheboygan County Humane Society, but even the people there thought the situation looked dire. But the Facebook folks were persistent and began donating money toward Liam's care.

With patience and persistence, Liam survived his ordeal and ultimately gained strength, albeit with half his tail amputated due to infection. Patricia Budelman of Thiensville ultimately adopted Liam and the story has a happy ending.

Kudos to Brennan for caring enough about a lone creature hungry for life, and to her Facebook friends who helped make it happen.